von Grey Band returns to World Café Live on the heels of new release

Pictured above is the von Grey Band. von Grey shares the stage with “Company of Thieves” this Tuesday at World Café Live, located at 3025 Walnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104. Show time is 8 p.m. Tickets are $16 in advance/$18 day of show and are available by calling 215-222-1400 or on-line at ww.worldcafelive.com.

Successfully blending Americana, country, pop, bluegrass and classical music, they are quickly establishing themselves as one of music’s most unique acts. Having recently completed their first West Coast concert tour that took them from Los Angeles to Vancouver, this Georgia-based quartet, consisting of sisters Kathryn (18), Annika (16), Fiona (15) and Petra (12), are poised for pop music stardom.

Their latest self-titled five-song EP, featuring the single “Coming For You,” is a shining example of what von Grey is capable of producing when combining great songwriting with well-executed instrumentation.

“When we were writing this EP it was the first time we were experimenting in the alternative side of music,” says Annika von Grey. “We had been a lot more folky and acoustic before that. We experimented a little more with being a little bit more edgy lyrically and even just making sure that the songs have a little depth to them. We try to have an understanding of what is going on in the world and I think that helps us write less from the perspective of an angsty teenager and more from a global perspective.

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“We do not have the most life experience,” added Annika, “but we can really pull from things that we’ve observed in others and over time. We have to make sure we write music that’s interesting without people being distracted by the fact that we are so young.”

Exposed to a variety of music at an early age, it was their parents that raised them on a diet of Crowded House, The Talking Heads and Led Zeppelin as well as classical, folk and jazz.

“Our parents are not musical, but they have been huge lovers of music for a really long time,” recalls Annika. “Especially my dad. He played us a huge variety of different artists when we were younger, so we got a really big inventory of contemporary sounding songs. This has helped us a lot as we’ve evolved with what our musical voice is and what music we want to create.”

At first listen, von Grey would appear to be the merging of four musical prodigies that are seasoned musicians years beyond their youth.

“Not so,” says Annika. “I don’t think music is something we were naturally good at. We made a lot of squeaking sounds for many years when we were first learning the instrument. The actual talent or ability to play instruments is just purely a result of hard work and a lot of practice and a lot of years of not sounding good so that we could eventually make actual notes.

“I think individually we’ve all really grown as people because we’ve been forced to express ourselves in ways that we would not have been if we were not trying to write music that was emotional,” she added. “I think that has really helped us grow and mature as individuals.”

Home schooled from an early age, von Grey has been a team effort of family working together for the same common goal — to be a successful touring and recording band.

“It’s a democratic environment,” says Annika. “When someone is strongly in opposition of a decision we have made, then we are always open to discussion. We do have roles so we make sure things get done, and I think that falls on Fiona and I most of the time just because we write most of the music and we talk with our team on the phone.

“We’ve been really lucky,” she added. “We’ve gotten support locally and from the media and people that come to our shows and follow us on Facebook. We haven’t had too many roadblocks in the way. It’s been pretty positive so far.”

“We’re lucky that we’re surrounded by people that are very supportive and very open to what we have to say,” says Annika.

“You have to have a close circle of trust and your family’s support. Our parents are the backbone, and their support has made this possible and it’s really something that we cherish and are very appreciative of. We have a shared fate of vision. We all have the same goals of what we want the outcome to be, but also what we want to create.”

von Grey shares the stage with “Company of Thieves” this Tuesday at World Café Live, located at 3025 Walnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104. Show time is 8 p.m. Tickets are $16 in advance/$18 day of show and are available by calling 215-222-1400 or on-line at ww.worldcafelive.com.